Project Update

Got busy at work... and didn't have a bunch of time to work on the bike, but its coming along. Further, had to deal with a lot of engineering/machining hassles that come with any customizing project.

Since the last picture, I've got the gearbox, battery tray, oil tank, filter, axles, steering damper and the entire front end done.



Engine's ready to go together soon, though I'm worried about one of the Carrillo con rods being a bit stiff on the crank journal. Will have to spend a bunch of time measuring, checking that before going any further. Also, SKF 21306 main bearings - having more robust self-centering characteristics than "superblends" - have proven difficult to shim for endplay. (Stuart or NortonFan, whichever one of you knows Kelly Cork... could you PM me with his contact info? Thanks.)

I've still got to get the primary and final drive stuff together as well as the alternator, rear brake, rearsets and wiring. That stuff's just bolts together - so I'm not so worried about it. Its the HOURS and HOURS of wet sanding and polishing aluminum that I'm really dreading.

Unfortunately, at this rate I'm probably not going to make it to the Rogue's Rally. :cry:

David, the bearing choice you made came for Ed V off the Brit bike site. Not Kelly's idea of useing ball bearings with two extra balls the EE series. Ed V had said that the bearings you are running were used to keep racing Harleys from breaking the crank cases. He also later added that they honed the iner race to slip fit the crank and make shimming easyer. Some diamond paper on the crank journal might do the same for you.
I am sure that Kelly would have some good ideas on this as well though. Kelly wanted to try angular contact ball bearings as found in some Ducks but hasn't tryed it yet. norbsa

Whoops... Thanks Greg. That certainly explains my difficulty in getting the bearing on the drive side on the crank. Now I just gotta get it off so I can open it up with some 1200 grit paper. I'll follow up with EdV on the particulars.

Hey Greg, did you ever find that check? Sorry I didn't follow up with you on that. Your long-travel kit was a snap to install - except for the spring preload, which prevented easy threading of the cap nut.

Hi Doc,

Thanks for the project update; it looks almost too nice to ride!

I understand your concerns about the tight con rod. I also had a tight rod on an engine I was building recently. I thought briefly about leaving the rod on the crank, as it seemed only slightly tight and would no doubt wear-in to the proper clearance.

However, it bugged me too much. So, I got another one and, predictably, the tightness disappeared.

Jason

No David I wrote you about the check never did find it. If it isn't cashed by now I would call it lost. Yes talk with Ed V I don't know if he preloaded those or set them nill clearance. The Yellow and Black looks good I am doing an 850 in Dark Green and Black including Black chrome exhaust in the 1 5/8. Did the head lite and the headlite brackets in black but not the rimms they were new and... norbsa

man that is going to be a sweet looking ride when your done.keep up the great work

Thanks for the kind words.

Lot of work. Lot of learning. Maybe - someday - I'll even ride it.

Pics of the bike through the last 6 months of work.

Nice!

Looking good.
What is/are the carb/s of choice?

750:

Funny you should ask.

With all my previous posts on "better being the enemy of good enough." The answer might suprise you.

I've got 2 sets I'm going to play with. The first being a set of 33mm Keihin CR Special roundslides. I've got to fab a throttle linkage and a few other bits, but they're only about as big as the Mik VM's - so I don't have the clearance issues associated with FCR's. Much nicer than the Mik's though.

However - CR's aren't legal for racing, nor does anyone have jetting info for me to go on. So, I'll be breaking in the motor and racing the bike on a pair of resleeved Amal 932's. Lots of tuning info and simple setup trump the higher tech carbs in this case. (Don't want to mess with experimental carbs on a brand new motor!)